Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about a Penalty Charge Notice because the Authority has offered to cancel it.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, complains about a Penalty Charge Notice which the tribunal asked the Authority to reconsider on the grounds of mitigation.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the Authority offers a fair remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I read the complaint and the tribunal decision. I received information from the Authority about events since the tribunal decision. I invited Mr X to comment on a draft of this decision.

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What I found

4. The Authority issued Mr X with a Penalty Charge Notice for stopping on a red route. Mr X appealed to the tribunal. Mr X told the tribunal that he had to stop due to a medical condition. The tribunal said it could not cancel the Penalty Charge Notice but it asked the Authority to reconsider the case on the grounds of mitigation. The tribunal has no power to cancel a Penalty Charge Notice due to mitigation.
5. The Authority wrote to Mr X and asked him to provide evidence of his medical condition. It said if he did not do so, within 14 days, it would continue to enforce payment of the fine.
6. Mr X did not provide the evidence the Authority had asked for. The Authority issued a Notice of Rejection. A Notice of Rejection is a document that allows people to appeal to the tribunal.
7. In response to my enquires the Authority explained it should not have issued the second Notice of Rejection but should have continued to enforce payment of the fine because Mr X had not provided any medical evidence. Due to the error in issuing the second Notice of Rejection the Authority plans to cancel the Penalty Charge Notice. It will write to Mr X about this.

Assessment

8. I will not start an investigation because the Authority has offered to cancel the Penalty Charge Notice due to its error in issuing the second Notice of Rejection. This is a fair way to settle the complaint.

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Final decision

9. I will not start an investigation because the Authority has offered to cancel the Penalty Charge Notice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman